Mercer Advisors acquires women-led Columbus RIA in Ohio Valley push

Mercer Advisors has acquired Columbus-based NorthAvenue Financial Advocates as the $110 billion mega-RIA seeks to continue growing its presence across the Ohio Valley region. 

NorthAvenue was founded in 2018 by Kristen Moosmiller, who has led her practice alongside fellow advisor Stephanie Bailey and a six-team support staff, according to the firm’s website. Mercer’s Ohio Valley business has grown from managing approximately $100 million in client assets in 2019 to more than $2.2 billion today. 

“NorthAvenue is a great testament to the initiative that we laid out in the Ohio Valley this year to add AUM, and most importantly, add great long-term partners,” Mercer’s M&A executive Ted Motheral told InvestmentNews. “I think it's really unique that we have three executives who all sit in Ohio. So there is a firm initiative to continue growing in all of those areas, and that includes Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Cincinnati, Lexington, Louisville, Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Indianapolis.” 

Motheral, executive managing partner of M&A partner development at Mercer, is based in Cleveland. He is joined in the state by Mercer’s Ohio Valley regional partner Chip Workman, as well as the Columbus-based Ben Kautz, who is executive managing partner of the East Division at Mercer Advisors.  

Mercer now has Ohio Valley office locations in Cincinnati and Westerville, Ohio; Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, as well as Lexington and Louisville in Kentucky. Motheral described Mercer’s M&A activity in 2026 as being on par with last year’s pace, adding that he expects Mercer to finish this year having made between 15 to 20 acquisitions. 

NorthAvenue’s services include investment management and planning support for taxes, trust and estate, retirement, and insurance. The women-led firm builds upon the Women & Wealth unit formed by Mercer in March as an internal initiative focused on strengthening the firm’s strategy for serving women clients and growing its base of female advisors.  

“Kristen [Moosmiller] is a great example of someone who is a financial advisor to people of all walks of life, but she does have a great clientele of women clients,” said Motheral. “You're seeing women in all walks of life who are controlling finances for their families, and they want people who are going to resonate with them.” 

Denver-headquartered Mercer ranks among the most active acquirers of RIAs, with the aggregator now spanning more than 1,700 employees across 120 locations. Majority ownership of Mercer is owned by private equity firms Oak Hill Capital, Genstar Capital, and Altas Partners. 

“As a predominantly women-led team, we’ve seen firsthand the value of building relationships and planning experiences that resonate with women,” Moosmiller said in a statement. “Joining Mercer Advisors allows us to expand that impact by pairing our approach with deeper resources and specialized capabilities for women investors.”